Ironer shoe and control device



April 19, 1949.l

Filed Jan. 20, 1945 J. vA. BRIGGs 2,467,655

IRONER SHQE AND CONTROL DEVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 fin ill,"

' @WMM/@ 'April 19, 1949. J. A. BRIGGS K 2,467,655

IRONER SHOE AND CONTROL DEVICE Filed Jan. 20, 1945 2 Sheets-Sheet 2v Patented Apr. 19, 1949 S PATENT 'IR'.ONER SHOE AND CONTROL DEV-ICE Joseph A. Briggs, Park Ridge, ill., assigner of one-halfxtor-Donaldifl. Mossman, ISr., and one- -1half :to :'.Iohn.E. .Mossman Application January'20, 1945, SerialNo. l573,749

=`4 Claims. l

The present invention relates to the-shoes oi ironing'machines. It'i-si-the principal purpose 'of this invention to providemore -uniform and-'accurate heating control offtheironer shoe.

11n-ironer shoes '-as they Lare now constructed, the main part kof the shoe is a heavy metal bar which in cross section-iscurved to'provide'a concave surface for engaging the'ironer drum. The side-edgesof thislbarare usually curved up away from :theconcave f'sur'faceand the heatingelement bywhi'c'hheat is Napplied to the fbar is arranged alongth'e convexsurface of the bar between theturned'rupside edges. According tomy invention "'I-use `two heating `elements along "the back of the `shoe 'and pressfthem into position `by employing sa sub-shoe I.that presents -a concave surfacetowardzth'e main shoe. I utilize this subshoe in two ways to improve -the operation and control of theheating means for the shoe. According to my inventionthelsub-shoe is-so constructed as tolhave .considerablyless rigidity than the main `shoe and :it :is 4given a greater y overall curvature than the `main Ikshoe -so that Vwhen 4it is applied tto ythe main shoe 4over the heating y element it can be placed under a tension'that will guarantee .adequate :tight engagement of the heating. element vwith .the Vmain shoe. This 'construction of'the sub-shoeenables'rme also .to use itas a supporting means :for a .control switch limiting the-.temperature of .the .main .'shoe.

It is a `further. purposeof my invention to vprovide in an ironer .shoe a novel circuit control mechanism .responsive vto the' temperature .of ythe iron for breaking vthe lcircuit to theheating ele ments. The construction'of the circuit control being lsuch that ,the heat responsive elementis free .of the-circuit, and thereiore,uninfluenced by theheating effect of .current owingin thecircuit. By this construction itis possible also to avo-idthe damaging .eiiects .of the highitemperaturesrof the main shoeto current carryingparts of the control. The construction also=enables me to place the heat responsive elementv inthe most favorable position for response to the temperature of the main shoe.

The nature and advantagesof my .invention will appear more fully .from the 'following description and accompanying drawings l-whereinfa preferred vform of the inventionvis disclosed. It should be understood however, that the drawings and description are illustrative only and are not to be taken as limitingthe invention except insofar as itis limited bythe 4claims.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a plan viewroifan ironershoeiembodying my invention;

Figure .2 is an enlarged sectional "view taken through the'shoeon the line 2-2 of 'Figure "1;

yFigure 3 is ane'en'largedfragmentary -sectional viewtaken on theline 3-`3 of Fi'gurel;

Figure 4is a'fragmentary plan view of 'a slightly modiediorm o'ftheinvention; and

'Figure VI5 is-a 'sectional view taken onthe line 5 5 ofFigure 4.

Referring now to the drawings, thefironershoe o'f ythe present invention is made/up "of 'a main shoe lI0 which comprises a 'bar of'rather heavy gauge-metal. This shoe is curved so'as'topresent a Vconcave surface II toward the drum ror roll portion I2 of vthe ironer. 'The Ibar has its Aside edges l-I'3 'and #I4 turned up away from the rll'er I2. The'side edgesiI- and I-dlgive-rigidityto the bar I0.

Inorder to heat the main shoe, I provide thereon two 'heaterfelements I5 and I5. 'These heater elementsare-placed upon insulating strips I1 and I 3=that are Ilaid against lthe convex back wof the main shoe I 0. A-suitable insulating material 4for this purposelismica. The heating elements are coveredwithinsulating sheets I9 and 20 and the assemblies of the heating elements with their `insulating sheets/are pressed againstthe main shoe by a sub-shoefZI. `This-sub-shoe extends the full length of `rthe main shoe as illustrated in Figure -'1 o'f the drawings. 'It carries two ears 422 and 23 by rwhichthe ironer shoe may be mounted. The sub-shoe-i'sprovidedwith a raised central portion 24. .This :central portion terminates just short ofthe endsiof the sub-shoe so as to leave two end portions .2.5 and .'26 to make a close fit all'the way acrossthefends of the main shoe.

Ina/device of thischaracter, I find thatfth'e heating of the 'mainshoemay bemade more uniform by .insuring adequate and uniform engagement :of the heater assemblies with theback of the main shoe. Accordingto my invention, Iso construct the Ysub-.shoe 2l as to cause-itto follow the shape of the vmain shoe when it is un der compression and thus guarantee .uniform engagement of theheating .units with .themain shoe. I make `thesubshoe12l withasomewhat greater curvature between .its side edgeszthanis found,in'thecorresponding part Yoi the mainshoe. This 'greater curvature is indicated by the :dotted line I2 la in Figure 2 of .the drawings. Thesubshoe is ymadeof `material having at least some resiliency. Itis .also made of 'lighter .or more yielding material than'the mainshoe I0. The two shoes are secured together `by a series of spaced vstud-s ;2'I, .spaced lengthwise along the main .shoe and extending outwardly through'the raised central portion 24rof .the sub-shoewhere they receive washers 28 and nuts 29. By tightening the nuts 29 I draw the central portions of the two shoes toward each other. Because the main shoe is most rigid at its side edges and the sub-shoe is most rigid at the raised central portion 24, I can bring the heating elements under substantially uniform pressure from side to side and cause them to tightly engage the back of the main shoe.

I also utilize the sub-shoe 2| as a means for mounting a control switch that is adapted to open the circuit for the heating coils I and I6 when the temperature of the main shoe reaches a predetermined level. One of the features of this part of my invention is a construction whereby the heat responsive element is entirely free of the control circuit so that the current owing through the heaters only affects the temperature control element through the heat imparted to the main shoe.

Referring now to Figures 2 and 3, I show a shaft 30 mounted in the raised portion 24 of the sub-shoe 2|. This shaft serves to pivot a lever 3|. The lever 3| is bent into substantial U shape as shown and pivotally supports a second lever 32 which is also U shape. A pivot pin 33 connects the levers 3| and 32, the pin being located at the free end of the lever 3| and intermediate the ends of the lever 32. The lever 32 carries a wiring terminal 34 and a switch contact 35 at the end thereof most remote from the shaft 36. One of the leads 36 supplying current to the heating elements I5 and I6 extends into the space be tween the raised portion 24 of the sub-shoe 2| and the back of the main shoe for mounting on the terminal 34. The sub-shoe has an opening 31 cut out to provide for making connections. At one edge of the opening 31 I mount a bar 38. The bar 38 carries a Contact 39 and a wiring terminal 40 to which a lead 4| is mounted. As illustrated in Figure 3 the contacts and terminals are insulated from their respective supports 32 and 38 in accordance with well known practice.

The bar 38 has a spring 42 secured to its free end and this spring is also connected to the lever 32 between the pivot pin 33 and the contact carrying end of the lever 32. The spring is under sufcient tension to maintain the contacts 35 and 39 in engagement. contacts, I provide a finger 43 on the lever 32 and I provide a bi-metallic heat responsive strip 44 on the main shoe I0. The strip 44 is secured at 45 to the main shoe. This securing may be accomplished in several ways. Wherever possible it is desirable to weld this strip to the main shoe since this gives a good heat conducting joint. A bar 46 may also be used across the secured end of the element 44 if desired. It will be noted that the element 44 is so positioned that it receives its heat directly from the main shoe I0, likewise the element is entirely free of the electrical circuit for supplying current to the heating elements |5 and I6. The element 44 when heated will swing up to engage the lever 32 and tend to move the linger 43 upward. In normal operation the spring 42 holds the parts in the position shown in Figure 3 with the lever 3| resting against the lower end of an adjusting sciew 41. This adjusting screw can be moved up or down so as to change the normal resting position of the nger 43 with respect to the element 44. In this way the temperature of the main shoe I at which the current will cut off can be varied to suit the desired working conditions.

In order to separate the It will be noted from Figures 2 and 3 that actually contact elements 35 and 39 are spaced well away from the main shoe I0 so that they are not subjected to the intense heat of the ironer shoe. However, the more important fact is that the bi-metallic heat responsive element 44 is under no load whatsoever during the entire run of normal operation of the shoe. The element 44 is only subjected to mechanical stress when the shoe I0 gets hot enough to make it necessary to open the circuit by separating the contacts 35 and 39. This is a particular advantage in prolonging the life of the control element. It is also a particular advantage in maintaining the accuracy of the control. It is obvious that the control element cannot keep its accuracy as well when it is under strain or carrying current or both, as it can when during most of the time of operation it is under no mechanical strain and is carrying no current.

For some purposes it is desirable to have a less sensitive control and one which is not so expensive. Likewise, it is desirable to have a control where all of the parts are readily accessible for replacement. In Figures 4 and 5 of the drawings I illustrate a form of device wherein the sensitiveness shown in the controls of Figures 1 and 3V is some what sacriced to provide a cheaper and more accessible control unit. In this form of the invention I mount a by-metallic heat responsive element 48 on the raised portion 24 of the subshoe 2|. The bi-metallic heating element 48 is mounted by a removable bolt 49, the head of which is formed in such fashion to hold the bar' 48 in proper alignment lengthwise of the portion 24. A nut 50 is used to clamp the parts together. The bi-metallic element 48 has a contact engaging pin 5| at its free end. This pin extends through an aperture 31 provided in the part 24. There are two studs 52 and 53 mounted in the part 24 at opposite ends of the aperture 31. The stud 53 is apertured at its top end to receive a pivot pin 54 which mounts a bifurcate lever arm 55. The lever arm 55 has its free end also bifurcated at 56 as shown in Figure 4. This bifurcated end of the lever arm 55 extends over the stud 52 and rests upon a spring 51. The level of the lever arm 55 is controlled by an adjusting screw 58 that is threaded into the stud 52. The screw 58 has a head 59 thereon, the head 59 being of any suitable material but having a wear plate 6I) which is adapted to engage rounded surfaces 6I provided on the lever arm 55.

The lever arm 55 carries the circuit control elements for controlling the supply of current to the heating elements I5 and I6 of the ironer shoe. One conducting strip 62 has a stationary contact 63 thereon. Another spring contact carrying strip 64 carries the other contact 65.

The members 62 and 64 are carried by the lever" 55 being mounted by suitable insulating members 66 and a screw 61 that threads into the lever 55.

In operation the device shown in Figures 4 and 5 responds generally to the heat of the shoe, but does not show the sensitiveness of the form of device shoWn in Figures 1 and 3. In this form of the invention the element 48 normally lies ilat against the under surfaces of the member 2 I. It

` has suicient strength and resiliency to hold the contacts 63 and 65 closed against the light pressure of the spring 64. Since the sole function of the member 64 is to carry current and since gravity would pull it away from the member 62, it can be made quite light to thus avoid any substantial load on the bi-metallic element 48. When the temperature of the bi-metallic element 48 increases, it will tend to overcome the pressure of the bimetallic element upward to keep the contacts 63 and 85 closed and eventually will so change the shape of the bi-metallic element as to permit the contacts to separate. This breaks the supply of current to the ironer shoe. It will be evident from the foregoing description that the device shown in Figures 4 and 5 does not either have the sensitivity or the freedom from strain that the heat responsive mechanism in the main form of the invention has. However, the bi- :rnetallic element i8 like the bi-metallic element 44 is entirely free of the electrical circuit. The head portion 51a of the member 5| is of insulation.

It is believed that the foregoing description and the accompanying drawings will enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention and to appreciate the advantages -of the novel features disclosed.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. An ironer shoe comprising a main shoe bar, electrical heating means resting on the back side of said bar, and a sub-shoe having a raised centra1 channel portion extending lengthwise over the main shoe bar and having side portions pressing the electrical heating means against the bar, the sub-shoe and the main shoe having means connecting said central channel portion and the main shoe bar to clamp them together, both of said shoes being curved transversely, with the sub-shoe having a greater initial curvature whereby to cause the side edges of the sub-shoe to act as fulcrum points when the shoes are drawn together, the main shoe having its side edges turned up whereby to provide the greatest rigidity at the side edges of the main shoe.

2. An ironer shoe comprising a main shoe bar, electrical heating means resting on the back side of said bar, and a sub-shoe pressing the electrical heating means against the bar, the sub-shoe and the main shoe having means cooperating to clamp them together, both of said shoes being curved transversely, with the sub-shoe having a greater initial curvature whereby to cause the side edges of the sub-shoe to act as fulcrum points when the shoes are drawn together, the main shoe having its side edges turned up whereby to provide the greatest rigidity at the side edges of the main shoe, and the sub-shoe having its central portion raised to provide a substantial U shape channel part, thereby giving the central portion of the sub-shoe the greatest rigidity.

l3. An ironer shoe comprising a main shoe bar, electrical heating means resting on the back side of said bar, and a sub-shoe having a raised central channel portion extending lengthwise over the main shoe bar and having side portions pressing the electrical heating means against the bar, the sub-shoe and the main shoe having means connecting said central channel portion and the main shoe bar to clamp them together, both of said shoes being curved transversely, with the sub-shoe having a greater initial curvature whereby to cause the side edges of the sub-shoe to act as fulcrum points when the shoes are drawn together, and the sub-shoe being substantially less rigid than the main Shoe in the parts thereof covering the heater elements.

4. An ironer shoe comprising a main shoe bar, electrical heating means resting on the back side of said bar, and a sub-shoe having a raised central channel portion extending lengthwise over the main shoe bar and having side portions pressing the electrical heating means against the bar, the sub-shoe and the main shoe having means connecting said central channel portion and the main shoe bar to clamp them together, both of said shoes being curved transversely, with the sub-shoe having a greater initial curvature whereby to cause the side edges of the sub-shoe to act `as fulcrum points when the shoes are drawn together, said sub-shoe having circuit controlling means for the heating elements mounted in said channel portion, and the main shoe having a heat responsive means thereon positioned to actuate the circuit control means on the sub-shoe.

JOSEPH A. BRIGGS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,627,922 Myers May 10, 1927 1,684,281 Kelly Sept. 11, 1928 1,975,736 Vaughan Oct. 2, 1934 2,170,680 Dunham Aug. 22, 1939 2,177,476 Castricone Oct. 24, 1939 2,186,930 Scharf Jan. 9, 1940 2,427,379 Ashbaugh Sept. 16, 1947 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 371,650 Great Britain Apr. 28, 1932 

